I've been slowly inching my way closer towards a paleo/primal lifestyle, and I have to say giving up carbs isn't that bad. I replaced carbs with bacon. (kidding).

In my last friday link roundup I shared with you how I am prone to getting SAD (seasonal affective disorder) during the dark and cold months of jan, feb & march here in new england.
I was shocked, and very comforted on how many people emailed me telling me they have it as well.
And a few of you asked what I do to help ease the symptoms.
I get outside as much as possible, even on the cloudy days. They say even if it's a cloudy day, the light illumination is still there (more so than being inside).
I do weightlifting to help boost/move the blood which helps boost the mood.
I take a lot of fish oil and a good amount of Vit D3. (make sure you get enough of the D3)
If you can, get high quality fish oil that is tested for the highest levels of omega 3's and is low in impurities.
In the photo above, I use Vital Choice fish oils and TwinLab Tri-boron. I don't take all the fish oils the same day, rather I alternate one day is krill oil with astaxanthin and the next day is the salmon oil with the astaxanthin....
Do they help? Yes they do. There was one winter where I did not take the fish oil for about 2 months and noticed a significant change in my moods.
Maybe Vital Choice will see this post and offer up a giveaway for my fans and perhaps a discount?
Feel free to share with us what works for you in combating SAD?
I would love to share your tips!

Last week it was my birthday as well as my wedding anniversary.
Hubby and I celebrated (and broke our diets) by going to one of our favorite places to eat: Kelly's Roast Beef.
If any of you are from boston, you know how good Kelly's is.
They haven't changed a thing there, no downsizing of meals, no cutting back on quality--same old roast beef sandwich perfection. (that bag of fries? it's a small :-)

Happy birthday and anniversary :). I want to take a biotin supplement but am looking for a chewable one and can't find it. Do you know of any? I hate that summer is over, and it is already quite gloomy and chilly here in Michigan. My dreams of moving to California are keeping me going and working hard.

Regarding acupuncture, your fuzzy slippers reminded me that I should post something. My very good friend and Salsa (dance, not food) teacher, Javier, who's day job is electrical engineer for a large power company, had surgery for a meniscus tear about two years ago which took him out of commission for about five months. Javier is only 32 now. The surgeon is well regarded for shoulders, knees, and wrists. The man is an amateur bike racer so he definitely wants to keep his patients in the game. So, Javier recently started feeling like his knee wants to lock up. MRIs haven't been definitive and the surgeon thinks it's a tendon. Another doctor gave a similar second opinion, but both agree they wouldn't know without additional surgery. Another dance teacher suggested acupuncture and the second surgeon thought it was a good idea as it's been done for 3000 years. My friend has had four treatments in the last month, plus about $200 of ointments and pills. Now he thinks he's ready for additional surgery. He thinks the ointment provides more relief than the acupuncture.

about vanilla sugar blog

Unique eats, creative recipes, as simple as possible.What drives me to create? Seeing dishes in restaurants, meals created on TV, recipes in cookbooks/online, and I always think to myself why didn’t they add this or why did they leave out that? Love to question, love to research, and love to learn about combining different flavors and textures in recipes.Recipe creations please email: vanillasugarblog@aol.com